SPONSORs
Woman Suffrage + Voting Rights Panel
“Celebrating Woman Suffrage + the Struggle for Voting Rights” is a panel discussion examining the complex history of enfranchisement in the United States and its relevance to the ongoing anti-racist struggle against voter suppression. As we approach the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment and stand at the threshold of a presidential election, we gather a dynamic group of speakers to illuminate the history and discuss the present challenges. Included are Gail Pellerin, Santa Cruz County Clerk/Registrar of Voters, as our moderator; with presentations by Judge Marla Anderson, Judge of the Superior Court of California, Monterey County; Bettina Aptheker, scholar-activist and Distinguished Professor Emerita of the Feminist Studies Department at University California Santa Cruz; and Professor Aída Hurtado, Luis Leal Endowed Chair, Associate Dean, and Professor in the Department of Chicana and Chicano Studies at UC Santa Barbara. Following, at 5pm PDT, the Festival will present the orchestral world premiere of The Battle for the Ballot by composer Stacy Garrop, inspired by the centenary of the 19th amendment and pivotal figures in the Woman Suffrage movement. You won’t want to miss it!
Never has the issue of voting rights been more relevant or our responsibilities as U.S. citizens been more vital. To learn more about voting rights, Bookshop Santa Cruz has compiled an adult and children’s reading list which you can find here to order online or for curbside pick up. To register to vote in California visit here.
This event is sponsored by: Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, The Humanities Institute at UCSC, Baskin Foundation UC Presidential Chair for Feminist Studies, and Bookshop Santa Cruz
Co-Sponsors: NAACP, Temple Beth El and Women Lawyers of Santa Cruz County
PANELISTS:
JUDGE MARLA ANDERSON
Judge Marla Anderson is a Judge of the Superior Court of California, County of Monterey where she has served for over 25 years and has presided over a variety of trial calendars, including criminal law, family law, juvenile law, probate, and civil law. Judge Anderson served as the Presiding Judge of the Monterey County Superior Court from 2013-2015, and during her tenure as Presiding Judge, she instituted a strategic plan to improve judicial administration. Judge Anderson served as Dean of the California B. E. Witkin Judicial College in 2013 and 2014 and in 2014-2016 served on the Chief Justice of California’s Commission on the Future of California’s Court System. She is a member of the Judicial Council of California, the policymaking body of California’s courts. Judge Anderson received her Juris Doctor degree from the University of California–Davis School of Law (King Hall), a Master of Arts degree from the University of Southern California, and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Loma Linda University-La Sierra. Prior to her appointment to the bench, Judge Anderson served the County of Monterey as a prosecuting attorney for the District Attorney’s Office.
BETTINA APTHEKER
Bettina Aptheker is Distinguished Professor Emerita, Feminist Studies Department, at the University of California Santa Cruz, where she taught for forty years. She currently continues to teach occasional seminars, and advise graduate and undergraduate students. She is the Peggy & Jack Baskin Foundation UC Presidential Chair for Feminist Studies (2017-2021) Her books include a memoir, Intimate Politics: How I Grew Up Red, Fought for Free Speech & Became a Feminist Rebel, and The Morning Breaks: The Trial of Angela Davis. A scholar-activist Bettina has been engaged in anti-racist, social justice, feminist, and LGBT rights movements for many years. She is the recipient of many awards for teaching and her memoir was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award. She lives in Santa Cruz with her wife, Kate Miller.
AIDA HURTADO
Professor Aída Hurtado is Luis Leal Endowed Chair, Department of Chicana and Chicano Studies, at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Dr. Hurtado is a social psychologist who combines the feminist writings of African American scholars, with Chicana feminisms, social identity theory, and Anzaldúa’s Borderland Theory to delineate the applicability of intersectionality to different ethnic, racial, and gender formations. Her books include The Color of Privilege, Voicing Chicana Feminisms, Beyond Machismo, and Intersectional Chicana Feminisms. She is the recipient of the SAGE Award for Distinguished Contributions to Gender Equity in Education Research, the Outstanding Latino/a Faculty in Higher Education Award, and the Heritage Award from the American Psychological Association. Professor Hurtado spoke at the 2017 and 2018 Women’s March and served on the Women’s March Steering Committee. She has served as a consultant to the Ford Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, and the Kellogg Foundation.
GAIL PELLERIN, MODERATOR
Gail Pellerin is the Santa Cruz County Clerk/Registrar of Voters. In this position she manages all elections conducted in the county and serves as the Commissioner of Civil Marriage. Her office is responsible for voter registration, conducting elections, managing candidate and campaign filings, issuing marriage licenses and conducting ceremonies, maintaining fictitious business name filings, and serving as a passport acceptance facility. Pellerin has 34 years of experience in public service–seven years working for the State Legislature in Sacramento and 27 years serving as the primary elections official in Santa Cruz County. In June 2018, Pellerin was elected to her 4th term as County Clerk. She served as President of the California Association of Clerks and Election Officials from 2010 to 2012 and is currently co-chair of the Secretary of State’s Voting Accessibility Advisory Committee. Pellerin is the author of several election guidebooks to assist voters in navigating through various election procedures including Initiatives, Recalls, and Referendums.
The event will be followed by a live Q&A, and precedes an evening concert featuring the orchestral world premiere of The Battle for the Ballot by composer Stacy Garrop, inspired by the centenary of the 19th amendment and pivotal figures in the Woman Suffrage movement.